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Sweaterweather
Sweaterweather is about a turtle, a rabbit, and other sweet creatures on a snowy journey. It contains short comics and lots of other delightful things, such as paper dolls, postcards, and stamps. Sweaterweather is being released in June just in time to save those longing for the cold from a long hot Summer!
96 pages, Paperback
First published July 14, 2003
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Displaying 1 - 24 of 24 reviews
November 18, 2019
A lot of the same content as the more updated version. This one is missing the lovely explanations between each story and includes one story the other version does not (I assume because the story involves smoking).
February 11, 2016
http://openbooksociety.com/article/sw...
Sweaterweather & Other Short Stories
By Sara Varon
ISBN 978-1-67672-48-0
Author’s website: http://www.chickenopolis.com/
Brought to you by OBS Reviewer Scott
Review
Normally, I’m not predisposed to anthropomorphic comics. It takes certain panache to pull off being a rarity and almost a retro look in the modern comic’s industry; and Sara Varon pulls it off with a touch more flair, with her eccentrically drawn creatures and people. Sweaterweather & Other Stories (hereafter Sweaterweather) is a diary in the life of Varon as an artist. The stories encompass more than a decade of mini-comics and other curios and are a delight to read. The chronology isn’t perfect but in the context of the whole it works and works well. Chronicling her rise to an independent full-time illustrator, Sweaterweather is a rare glimpse into the process of the artist’s mind at work, both reflective and introspective – a rare treat in today’s age of graphic novels.
The graphic novel is a collection of vignettes, short strips of comics that convey a beginning, middle and end. Taken from various points in her career, this collection of “shorts” run the gamut of boxing matches, the secrets of how to urban farm bees, and even a jab at clueless book reviewers. With the primary characters being animals, the reader is lured into the story and its deeper meaning to the work (if at all there is one). Some stories are ambivalent and trite, simply being for the sake of artistic expression, others are more proliferous such as the bee story, in which Varon exposes her interest in urban breeding, and at length describes the inner workings of the beehive and urban beekeeping. In her epilogue, so to speak, we find the artist bare, revealing her hopes and fears about life as strictly doing art – without the benefit of a “day job.”
Graduating from a fine arts college, Varon is classically trained (as seen briefly in a portrait in her “5 day comic strip”) and to discard realism for the phantasmagoria that the art in Sweaterweather, is a remarkable achievement. All types of animals are depicted, and each carries their own weight in stylistic independence. The composition of the frames, working off the “six panel grid” of more traditional comics, is fluid as the eye picks out the important details in each story and weighs them against other elements in the scene. Although some might call the drawing style “juvenile,” it takes an impressive amount of skill to pull this style off with the ease that is portrayed here. Over the course of the decade or so, you see improvement in graphical layout, design and the complexity of the story that takes place in so little space.
Being anthropomorphic animals, the characters are allowed a lot more leeway in Varon’s art, compressing and expanding, transforming and moving in a distinct rhythm that’s hard to pin down. Her pieces of people are satisfied by engaging in only realistic fashion. With animals Varon seems to disregard reality temporarily, gleefully engaging in hyper-exaggerated fisticuffs, bizarre characters on book review safaris, and other examples of whimsical flights of fancy. Even in the only colored piece of artwork a human grows feathers in a pot so he can have wings to fly like a bird, It’s quite astounding.
For fans of James Kochalka, animal tales (no pun intended), and for the sheer love of a short, but insightful look into the mind of a comic’s author, look no further than Sweaterweather. It is a fantastic piece of picture and word and is sure to be a delight to readers of any form or function. It’s educational, introspective, whimsical and a darn good read.
*OBS would like to thank the publisher for supplying a free copy of this title in exchange for an honest review*
Sweaterweather & Other Short Stories
By Sara Varon
ISBN 978-1-67672-48-0
Author’s website: http://www.chickenopolis.com/
Brought to you by OBS Reviewer Scott
Review
Normally, I’m not predisposed to anthropomorphic comics. It takes certain panache to pull off being a rarity and almost a retro look in the modern comic’s industry; and Sara Varon pulls it off with a touch more flair, with her eccentrically drawn creatures and people. Sweaterweather & Other Stories (hereafter Sweaterweather) is a diary in the life of Varon as an artist. The stories encompass more than a decade of mini-comics and other curios and are a delight to read. The chronology isn’t perfect but in the context of the whole it works and works well. Chronicling her rise to an independent full-time illustrator, Sweaterweather is a rare glimpse into the process of the artist’s mind at work, both reflective and introspective – a rare treat in today’s age of graphic novels.
The graphic novel is a collection of vignettes, short strips of comics that convey a beginning, middle and end. Taken from various points in her career, this collection of “shorts” run the gamut of boxing matches, the secrets of how to urban farm bees, and even a jab at clueless book reviewers. With the primary characters being animals, the reader is lured into the story and its deeper meaning to the work (if at all there is one). Some stories are ambivalent and trite, simply being for the sake of artistic expression, others are more proliferous such as the bee story, in which Varon exposes her interest in urban breeding, and at length describes the inner workings of the beehive and urban beekeeping. In her epilogue, so to speak, we find the artist bare, revealing her hopes and fears about life as strictly doing art – without the benefit of a “day job.”
Graduating from a fine arts college, Varon is classically trained (as seen briefly in a portrait in her “5 day comic strip”) and to discard realism for the phantasmagoria that the art in Sweaterweather, is a remarkable achievement. All types of animals are depicted, and each carries their own weight in stylistic independence. The composition of the frames, working off the “six panel grid” of more traditional comics, is fluid as the eye picks out the important details in each story and weighs them against other elements in the scene. Although some might call the drawing style “juvenile,” it takes an impressive amount of skill to pull this style off with the ease that is portrayed here. Over the course of the decade or so, you see improvement in graphical layout, design and the complexity of the story that takes place in so little space.Being anthropomorphic animals, the characters are allowed a lot more leeway in Varon’s art, compressing and expanding, transforming and moving in a distinct rhythm that’s hard to pin down. Her pieces of people are satisfied by engaging in only realistic fashion. With animals Varon seems to disregard reality temporarily, gleefully engaging in hyper-exaggerated fisticuffs, bizarre characters on book review safaris, and other examples of whimsical flights of fancy. Even in the only colored piece of artwork a human grows feathers in a pot so he can have wings to fly like a bird, It’s quite astounding.
For fans of James Kochalka, animal tales (no pun intended), and for the sheer love of a short, but insightful look into the mind of a comic’s author, look no further than Sweaterweather. It is a fantastic piece of picture and word and is sure to be a delight to readers of any form or function. It’s educational, introspective, whimsical and a darn good read.
*OBS would like to thank the publisher for supplying a free copy of this title in exchange for an honest review*
July 24, 2015
Sweaterweather is essentially a collection of short stories in graphic novel format. Some of the stories are fictional, some are autobiographical, and others are informational. One of the short stories is an exerpt of the book Robot Dreams, which I really liked. However, I felt like the book was a collection of random cartoons inspired by writing prompts. It felt very disconnected, and while some of the stories were interesting, I had to slog my way through others.
The style is spare line drawings, mostly done in a purplish-blue ink, and the characters are almost exclusively animals. Cute, but a little spare for stories that didn't have much to them.
This book will have something for every reader, but it's a rare reader who will enjoy the entire book.
*Digital ARC provided by NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
The style is spare line drawings, mostly done in a purplish-blue ink, and the characters are almost exclusively animals. Cute, but a little spare for stories that didn't have much to them.
This book will have something for every reader, but it's a rare reader who will enjoy the entire book.
*Digital ARC provided by NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
November 28, 2011
The addition of paper dolls and postcards pushes this one to 3.5 stars for me.
I like Varon's style (Robot Dreams, Bake Sale), though this one was neither as moving or humorous as I found those titles. Also, I have a strong preference for color illustrations, and these are mostly black/white, with a bit of blue (though the paper dolls are color).
Sweaterweather consists of many short stories, often where animals go shopping, and then resolve some soft of problem. Some of the stories have zero words, some just a few, and one about bees has a slew of them. I appreciate the educational aspects of the bee story, though I found having your snowman smoke (different story) was a tad odd. Perhaps what happens to him was supposed to an anti-smoking warning?
This was a cute, quick read, but I won't highly recommend it like I will the other titles I mentioned.
I like Varon's style (Robot Dreams, Bake Sale), though this one was neither as moving or humorous as I found those titles. Also, I have a strong preference for color illustrations, and these are mostly black/white, with a bit of blue (though the paper dolls are color).
Sweaterweather consists of many short stories, often where animals go shopping, and then resolve some soft of problem. Some of the stories have zero words, some just a few, and one about bees has a slew of them. I appreciate the educational aspects of the bee story, though I found having your snowman smoke (different story) was a tad odd. Perhaps what happens to him was supposed to an anti-smoking warning?
This was a cute, quick read, but I won't highly recommend it like I will the other titles I mentioned.
July 7, 2016
I read Sweaterweather this week while sheltering indoors during the first of the El Nino rainstorms to hit Los Angeles. (In Southern California terms, this amount of weather is equivalent to a level five nor’easter blizzard.) As my sun-soaked, drought-weakened body shivered slightly in a Starbucks where the air conditioning was inexplicably running, I delighted in Varon’s opening story, “Turtle and Rabbit Comic.” An amicable rabbit and turtle, journeying through a snowstorm together, magically take shelter in the turtle’s shell. They drink a little tea, the rabbit knits himself a scarf and a hat for the turtle, and they continue on their way. Utterly charming.
READ MY FULL REVIEW FOR FANBASE PRESS HERE.
READ MY FULL REVIEW FOR FANBASE PRESS HERE.
September 30, 2023
I read this book ages ago, but I wanted to add that I recall using this book for one of my psychology classes. This book is wordless or nearly so. I had a project for my psychology of language (or something like that) class where I showed this book to three of my young cousins ranging in age from about 3 to 12 and asked them to narrate/tell the story. I then counted their words (and phonemes) used to tell the story.
November 18, 2015
This book is made up of a series of wordless comics about animals. There is an introduction to each story about the ideas. I am not sure who this book is geared toward. Some of the stories have adult ideas but they are so simplistic. The stories are all happy endings and sweet but I am not sure young children would get them.
I received a copy of this book from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.
I received a copy of this book from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.
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December 25, 2016Why I Recommend Bumping This Down On Your TBR: It's not a cohesive work, just various little pieces showcased in the same book. This didn't work for the kind of reader I am.
Why You Might Bump This Up On Your TBR: If you consider her one of your absolute favorite creators, then I imagine you would get a lot out of this work.
Why You Might Bump This Up On Your TBR: If you consider her one of your absolute favorite creators, then I imagine you would get a lot out of this work.
October 29, 2011
I liked this, but I definitely didn't love it. The interactive aspects (especially the postcards) were really appealing, but since I got it from the library I couldn't fully enjoy them. Sweaterweather is my favorite kind of weather, but the book just didn't live up to the fantastic title.
January 21, 2014
This is a collection of shorter, more experimental comics. Some of them I really liked, and some were just okay. I did think that there were some things in this one that just are not that kid-appropriate. But her illustrations haven't changed, and I just love them!
December 31, 2015
I didn't care for the meta nature of this. I had hoped it would be more of a straightforward collection, though Varon's asides about her life were passingly interesting. More about process than I cared for. Short and pleasant in any case.
November 3, 2007
Quirky adventures of animal friends. For adults.
November 23, 2007
So funny and creative! I love her use of animals and food. The story with the raccoon protagonist is one of my favorites.
June 25, 2008
awww.
Sara Varon. Cute, but unique, as always. I wish I could use the stamps and the postcards. Write more, yo.
Sara Varon. Cute, but unique, as always. I wish I could use the stamps and the postcards. Write more, yo.
June 19, 2008
Adorable! And slightly weird, but mostly adorable, plus lots of scarves.
July 1, 2008
Cute, gets under your radar touching. The stories are very short, which makes it a ridiculously quick read. Definitely it would be more fun to own so you could cut of the paperdolls and postcards.
July 2, 2008
great winter book
May 21, 2013
A wonderful book. Just goes to show you that you don't need words to get your point across, The Illustrations are wonderful. And a very funny book.
March 12, 2009
Love love loved it.
October 18, 2010
It's really sparse of words. suka banget pas bagian gambar yang dikasih warna biru... so creamy...
September 16, 2015
3.5 but I will round up because Sara Varon little blurbs about some of her shorter comics are so darn endearing!
Thank you NetGalley for the ARC!
Thank you NetGalley for the ARC!
October 5, 2015
Collection of stories with accompanying explanation from the author. Very sweet.
September 6, 2016
Not impressed.
September 5, 2015
Rating possibly slightly inflated because Sara Varon is my favorite.
Displaying 1 - 24 of 24 reviews